The Raiders end Mountain Hawks' two-year title run by dominating the second half.

For many weeks of this college football season, Lehigh had walked the high wire and lived to talk about an exciting victory once the drama had ended.

But on Saturday at Goodman Stadium, Colgate grounded that high-wire act with a dominant second half that left the Raiders with a 35-24 victory and the Patriot League championship.

Led by quarterback Gavin McCarney and tailback Jordan McCord, Colgate outgained the Mountain Hawks 251-80 and outscored them 21-0 after halftime to erase a 24-14 halftime deficit and won its first league championship since 2008, while ending Lehigh's two-year title run and its 18-game regular season win streak — the longest in the country at the FCS level.

And while the fact that the Raiders won the game wasn't a total surprise, it was how they won it that left many in the crowd of 8,036 scratching their heads.

Colgate (7-3, 5-0) entered the game ranked third in the nation in total offense and fourth in scoring offense. The Raiders were considered a big-play team that could strike from any spot on the field.

However, the guys from Hamilton, N.Y., showed that didn't have to score 47 or more points to win as they had done in their previous five games.

Instead of striking from long distance, Colgate methodically moved the ball by converting third-and-short and fourth-and-one situations into first downs.

The Raiders were 11-for-19 on third-down conversions and 3-for-4 on fourth-down attempts in compiling 24 first downs and building a nearly 28-minute advantage (43:51 to 16:09) in time of possession.

Each of Colgate's three scoring drives in the second half took a minimum of 10 plays and wore down a Lehigh defense that accomplished what it wanted to do in limiting big plays, but couldn't get the Raiders off the field.

The Mountain Hawks, meanwhile, racked up 252 yards of offense and 24 points in the first half, but were held to 25 plays and six first downs in the second half and much of that came on a desperation drive in the final 1:19 after the outcome had been decided.

"I was really pleased with the first half and overall I thought our defense played awesome," Lehigh coach Andy Coen said. "Our kids hung in there and did exactly what they needed to do on the defensive side to give us a chance to win the championship today.

"If you would have told me before the game that we would hold them to 400 yards of offense, I would have said, 'Give me the trophy.' But in the second half, we just didn't get it done offensively."

Colgate coach Dick Biddle said his team, which trailed 14-0 early in the second quarter, never flinched.

"It was a tough, physical game today and I think we kind of wore them out in the fourth quarter," he said. "We didn't panic on offense; we just kept doing what we were doing and the defense stepped up and put some pressure on."

Colgate's Kris Kent, a sophomore linebacker from Nazareth, got to enjoy a championship on his return home. He had some 50 family members and fans who got to enjoy a post-game celebration that lingered on the field for at least 15 minutes after the final whistle.

"It's definitely sweet to win it here and celebrate with my friends and family," Kent said. "I couldn't be happier."

Kent was also happy that his defense, which had allowed an average of 36.2 points over the past four weeks, was able to make a major contribution to the championship-clinching win.

"The offense has carried us on their backs for the past four games, so today we knew we had to step up," said Kent, who had three tackles. "We just tried to control what we could control. We knew the offense would score some points. We just had to stop them."

Few expected Lehigh to be stopped cold after the Mountain Hawks struck for three touchdowns on their first four possessions and then closed the first half with a career-best 43-yard field goal by Jake Peery.

But Peery would never get back on the field.

"We were just unable to execute effectively," said Lehigh quarterback Mike Colvin, who finished with 242 yards passing and one TD, but was hurt by two interceptions. "Colgate made some adjustments that were good for them and we were just unable to execute well enough. We were in good position in the first half, but when you come out and don't score in the second half you're not going to win."

Now if Lehigh has any hope of returning to the playoffs, it must rebound against rival Lafayette in the 148th edition of college football's most-played rivalry next week in Easton.

"This season isn't over," Coen said. "I plan on playing a lot more football."